Captain Brent ๐ฌ๐ง
@Birdseed501
A quirky look at Britain's aviation history, and how it has shaped our lives and culture.
Add to these very sobering figures, the astoundingly high accident rate in wartime flying training; both from trainee aircrew yet to appear on this chart and instructors who'd been selected from amongst the few survivors!
Blimey. When you put it like thatโฆ @RAFMUSEUM @WeHaveWaysPod @ww2headquarters
If I ran an Airline .. and one day .. The first thing I would do as CEO is be 100% clear that any of my Companys aircraft that had reached the end of their lives had teh company markings painted over - how ever you look at this it looks bad - is that a 767 >
The Heyford in practice defence against fighter attack a mere half-decade before the outbreak of WW2.
I've not posted much about the wonderfully bizarre Handley Page Heyford for a while, so I'll redress that today. The RAF's primary night bomber for much of the 1930s, it was involved in the first radar detection trials and later saw service in WW 2...as a glider tug!
The Heyford being used in Robert Watson-Watt & Arnold Wilkinsโ Daventry Experiment (1935). The birth of RAdio Detection And Rangingโฆ (Painting: โThe First Stepโ by Roy Huxley)
I've not posted much about the wonderfully bizarre Handley Page Heyford for a while, so I'll redress that today. The RAF's primary night bomber for much of the 1930s, it was involved in the first radar detection trials and later saw service in WW 2...as a glider tug!
Taken 106 years ago, on Monday 22nd Dec 1919, I have cleaned-up this autochrome view of the 6th Paris Air Show, photographed by Georges Chevalier at the Grand Palais des Champs-รlysรฉes. It is original colour, not colourised.
Turning into the grey murk, 62 years of age and plenty of life in the old bird yet. ๐บ๐ธ USAF KC135 Stratotanker #RCH632 62-3550 62 from PIK ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ณ๓ ฃ๓ ด๓ ฟ #avgeek fr24.com/RCH632/3b4ad4c5
RIP Norman Tebbit, Baron Tebbit (1931-2025) ex-RAF & BOAC pilot. Regardless of oneโs political persuasion, it is depressing that most of todayโs generation of politicians have only ever known politics (university>think tank>bag carrier>safe seat) with no grounding in the real ๐
Our latest internal Flt Ops newsletter has a small but significant piece recording the retirement of our last Hamble trained pilot from BA. Known formally as the College of Air Training (CAT), it was the main pilot training facility for BOAC/BEA/BA in the 60/70s. End of an era.
Silver Street, Bedford 1929. Airship R101 Ai animated photo.
AI Animated photo airship R101
Happy birthday - as would have been - wonderful Amy Johnson, born this day, 1903. Heroic pilot who lost her life during #WorldWarTwo First woman to fly solo from England to Australia (in 1930) in a second-hand biplane with no radio & very basic maps. ๐ช๐ซ
AI Animated photo of an origional colourised photo of airship R101
New Jet All Set (1959) A ยฃ0.5m wooden mock-up of a VC10 under construction at Weybridge, along with a look at the Vanguard production line. Despite the great hopes expressed here the total combined production run of both types was less than 100.
Happier days at Air India ๐ฎ๐ณ - stewardesses aboard Boeing 707-437 VT-DNZ 'Nangaparbat' arriving into London (1962). Ground handling courtesy of BOAC & their long articulated buses. VT-DNZ would serve the airline for 25 years, before being broken up at Bombay in 1987.
News item with an excellent demonstration of the flight deck actions which led to the stall & crash of BEA Trident G-ARPI at Staines, Middlesex on 18 June 1972. This was broadcast after the release of the official AAIB report in May 1973. #OTD #trident #disaster #staines